Nonreligious parents

Daddy, Daughter Discuss God (Again); More Cuteness Ensues By Wendy Thomas Russell | May 13, 2013: My husband and 7-year-old daughter had another totally awesome conversation about God a few days ago. They used to do that from time to time, but it’s been a while since the subject has come up in much detail. I sure love it when it does. The talks are always fun, insightful, thought-provoking and, frankly, cute as hell. They also present Charlie with golden opportunities to teach Maxine about honesty, diversity and the importance of kindness. Anyway, this one’s particularly good, so I wanted to share: Maxine: Where do you think God is? Like, which house or school… [...] Read more – ‘Daddy, Daughter Discuss God (Again); More Cuteness Ensues’.
The Best Thing About Being a Secular Parent? You Tell Me! By Wendy Thomas Russell | April 22, 2013: Not long ago, my sister and her husband invited an old friend over for dinner. The friend is a talker, so their nights with him usually require a lot of generosity on their parts. He tends, my sister tells me, to drone on endlessly about inane topics — including, but not limited to, good meals he’s eaten recently. You know that guy too, don’t you? Yeah. Well all do. Anyway, on this particular night my sister’s 4-year-old son was sitting at the table with them. He apparently had taken his cue from his parents because [...] Read more – ‘The Best Thing About Being a Secular Parent? You Tell Me!’.
12 Tips for Talking to Little Ones About Death By Wendy Thomas Russell | April 16, 2013: When American children return from school today, many will undoubtedly have questions about the Boston Marathon bombings — having glimpsed photographs, viewed video clips or spoken to peers. Depending on the age of your child, you might have some questions yourself: How much do I say? How much do I share? Click here for some great advice from Dr. Gene Beresin on CommonHealth for discussing the event — and others like it — with kids. Or read on for 12 general tips, revised from an earlier list, for talking to little ones about death. 1. Have [...] Read more – ‘12 Tips for Talking to Little Ones About Death’.
Nonreligious Parents a ‘Niche’ Market? Not By My Count By Wendy Thomas Russell | March 4, 2013: When I started pitching “Relax, It’s Just God” two years ago, I was told, repeatedly, that it was too niche for major publishers. At the time, I assumed this was true. After all, we live in a religious country. If I wanted to appeal to the masses, there were certainly better ways to go. But since then, I’ve come to strongly disagree with the contention that we of little faith are some hugely specialized market. And, today, I did some number-crunching. Now I’m no statistician, so feel free to check me on this. I started [...] Read more – ‘Nonreligious Parents a ‘Niche’ Market? Not By My Count’.
One Set of ‘Footprints in the Sand’ is Plenty for This Kid By Wendy Thomas Russell | February 25, 2013: When I was growing up — Missouri, 1980s — half the kids I knew had a framed copy of “Footprints in the Sand” somewhere in their house. Usually hanging in the living room. That poem was as meaningful to these families as Rudyard Kipling’s “If” was to ours. (My mom gave me a poster-sized copy of “If” right before I entered adolescence. I must have read it 500 times.) The point is, although it wasn’t in my own home, “Footprints in the Sand” was a part of my childhood. I have vivid memories of staring [...] Read more – ‘One Set of ‘Footprints in the Sand’ is Plenty for This Kid’.
God’s (Alleged) Gender Proves Problematic for Some Parents By Wendy Thomas Russell | February 18, 2013: About a year ago — when my daughter was six — I noticed that she had been sitting in silence for a surprisingly long time. “Are you okay?” I asked. “I’m sad,” she said. “Why are you sad?” I asked. “Because,” she said, “God is a boy and not a girl.” “How do you know?” “I just know,” she said, glumly. “And why does that make you sad?” “Because,” she said. “I’m a girl.” I don’t spend a lot of time complaining about religion. Usually, I just don’t see the point. Religion is so big [...] Read more – ‘God’s (Alleged) Gender Proves Problematic for Some Parents’.
This Blog Has Been Flagged as Inappropriate By Wendy Thomas Russell | January 28, 2013: A couple of weeks ago, a Texas mother named Deborah Mitchell wrote a guest blog for CNN’s iReport that quickly became one of the citizen-journalism site’s most widely read pieces. The blog received more than 750,000 page views, 9,000 comments and 64,000 Facebook recommendations. And as a testament to its controversial nature, the entire essay was flagged as “inappropriate.” Well, you know, I like to stay on top of current events, so I decided to check out the story that was causing all this grief and strife over at CNN. I clicked on over and, well, [...] Read more – ‘This Blog Has Been Flagged as Inappropriate’.
5 Reasons Not to ‘Fake Religion’ for the Kids By Wendy Thomas Russell | January 17, 2013: ‘I’m Not Religious, But I’m Considering Faking It For My Daughter.’ That was the headline over a blog post published yesterday on mommmish.com. Lindsay Cross, a regular contributor to the site, explained how she felt guilty about denying her 5-year-old “the chance for faith.” She wrote: “I feel bad thinking that she won’t grow up with the community and the support of a church. Even though I chose not to follow that path as an adult, I want her to be able to make that choice on her own and when she’s ready.” Cross, a [...] Read more – ‘5 Reasons Not to ‘Fake Religion’ for the Kids’.
Quick! What the Hell is Epiphany? By Wendy Thomas Russell | January 7, 2013: OK, y’all, I have to apologize. First, I’ve been traveling without my laptop for the last week and haven’t been able to update. Second, I’ve been really busy finishing up my book (!!) which has pushed the blog to the back burner lately. Case in point: My somewhat ill-thought-out previous blog post. Hopefully most of you got the gist of what I was trying to say, but if you didn’t, you can be sure you weren’t alone. That said, today is a new day, a new week and a new year! And there’s been a new [...] Read more – ‘Quick! What the Hell is Epiphany?’.
My Last Will and Testament (Sort Of) By Wendy Thomas Russell | December 13, 2012: One thing about being a nonreligious parent is that I have no expectation of an afterlife. I believe that when I leave the universe, I leave it for good. And whatever “spirit” I have survives only in the memories of the people I love. Which is enough. Honestly, it is. But it also makes me hyper-aware of what I leave behind. And that is especially true when it comes to my daughter. For the first few years of her life, I couldn’t help but be concerned that I would die, and all of what we’d [...] Read more – ‘My Last Will and Testament (Sort Of)’.